scorpiogray

hi is anyone shipping ther car if so how much do you reckon it costs advice on shipping greatly appreciated

melx

DrWho

Do a search, there's a few threads on this...

Unless the car's very special it's probably not worth it...

Suni&Jay

We looked into shipping our cars over, but as you can't get the value of the car until you got it here may not have been worth it.
Take in to account your car will be classed as an import (I know most cars are imported ) so the resale value will be less then similar oz spec car and insurance will be more, again cos it's classed as an import. I don't think that you would have to make any modifications to the car but well worth looking into.
Look at the link below to see how much is similar spec car is worth in oz.
http://www.carsales.com.au

slipshot

As many have commented it depends on the car. I have been enquiring about shipping my Dax Cobra (which will be there to say and which I have no intention of selling unless I'm so skint I have to) which will go with me regardless of where we end up (as it seems a new job has come up in the UK thus we'll not be going).

I got quotes for just shipping the car and given it's size if fairly large this would apply to most vehicles. UK to Melbourne was about £1000 plus the fees at the other end which will vary greatly. As my Cobra is over 30 years old (the chassis is anyway) it helps as I avoid customs duty and only pay GST which saves a packet on a $50,000 car. Had 3 quotes - £1500, 1200 and 1000. Insurance has to go on top but again, it depends on the car value.

Then, when I was getting quotes to move the whole house, we were basically going to have to go for a 40ft container which would mean the car would be included. The only additional cost is about £200 for the wooden framework that gets built around the car - thus this would have been the preferred route.

Have the contacts if needed.

You need to apply for permission to import the car before doing so. I have now done this, they requested a bit more info on the 18 Dec, and I'm still to hear any more. This cost $50 and HAS to be done prior. Will be interesting to see how long it takes and what they say (ie if there are any issues).

Hope this helps

Andy

mark213

Its usually alot more trouble than its worth. I wanted to import my LHD but that turned out to be a nightmare as it needs to be converted for a nice sum of $35K. If you really want to and the car is special then it would be worth it but if you ask me having to pay import duty on an item you have already paid duty and VAT on in the uk i think is a bit much..

alkristensen

Hi mate, im thinking of shipping my 1963 aircooled Vw Karmann Ghia and was told i need an import cert and it will be restriction free. Any idea what this means?

And with it being a classic will i have to have the child seat bits and the high brake light fitted as i can do that here (or do you havew to have an aussie garage do it)

Much appreciated for any advice if you have sourced it already.

Also id love the names or emails of the shipping companies you sorced for a thousand and what the procedures are to book(easy or hard) and are there any extras the shipping co charge for unpack(as i think driving it out wont cost much!)

Cheers

al

Coulterk

We shipped a car and that initial shipping cost was quoted at around £1000. You have to just check what you are getting for that as when it arrives you need to include the costs for clearing the car through customs and carrying out the vehicle checks. Try and include this with the shipping company as this is a real pain to do on your own as we had to do.

Then you will pay GST the car according to their assessment of the cars value (you can appeal this). You do not have to pay import duty if you have demonstrated that you have owned the car and been resident in your country of origin for the same period, but as far as I know you always pay GST.

Loubags

I have recently got my imported car up and running ( 8 Dec to be exact ) and unless you love your car, my advice would be don't bother.

My costs - all in - for my 2 yr old beetle convertible were -

Shipping ( with John Mason ), incl insurance - £2337.50
Inspection and quarantine fees in Oz - $345
Import duty ( based on market value of car in Oz at time ) - $3722
Child restraint brackets - $245
Inspection, import plates, licensing etc - around $300

Hassle factor - HUGE!

Before you ship you need vehicle import approval from Oz. There is a smallish admin fee for this, but you have to supply endless paperwork to prove the car is yours - passports, car info, proof of why you are moving to Oz etc.

Once you get here ( in WA anyway ) you need a temporary permit to drive it each time until it is licensed. This covers you for 48hrs and you have to specify where you will be driving to and from - eg, home to licencing centre and return.
On arrival at the licensing centre the car goes over the pits for inspection. You cannnot book this and so have to wait in turn. Average time for wait at Midland inspection pits is 3 - 4 hrs. It is best to get there at 7.15am as by around 8.00am you don't stand a chance of getting in.

If they find all ok you can then apply for import plates and then once you have them, return to the pits for them to be satisfied that you have them. They will then license the car and off you go.

Unfortunatley I needed to have child restraint brackets fitted ( compulsary in WA ) and as it was a convertible and not standard, this took another couple of weeks and hassle.

Was it worth it? For me most definately. I love my car and now I can drive it ( although its taken around 4 months to get it sorted ) I'm glad I brought it. However, there have been times when I wish I'd just bought another over here. I guess it just depends how attached you are to it.

chelov62

Hi Mel

I shipped my car in November 2003. I had a 40' container and had the car put in this at an extra 1,000 pounds. It cost me around $4,500 in tax when it got here and a further $700 to have a 'conversion' plate fitted. Its all based on the value of the car. To be honest, if its a car thats available here its not really worth the cost.

Chel

slipshot

Al

Import certificate is required regardless of the car. Go here

http://www.dotars.gov.au/transport/s...importing.aspx

And this contains all the info you need to import a car and the forms to fill in. You need to scan and email all the forms required - it's quicker than sending by mail anyway, and it was fine for me (although I do not have a decision as yet).

To find out the tax implications, go here

http://www.customs.gov.au/site/page.cfm?u=4371

As your car is over 30 years old, like mine, I applied under this section (number 1 or 4 if I recall) rather than section 8 which is for newer vehicles.

I do not think the child seat bits or the high level brakelight are required at all. Interestingly, talking with Cobra owners in Aus, one guy bought a car from another chap who imported it to Melbourne and it still had the speedo in mph only and that was fine. It may be with ours cars being 'classics' many of these things do not matter. Makes a mockery of the regulations but there you go...

Anything you do have to do you will not know until you get there so do not do anything here in the UK.

Booking is easy - once you have the import certificate, then you can ship away. Car does need to be VERY clean. Given mine is not the most watertight car (and has no roof) I was going to brush away all obvious mud and get the shippers to collect from my garage so there is no chance of additional dirt getting in.

PM me with an email and I'll send you all my quotes if you like...

slipshot

Just to add to this...

I first applied for the Approval on the 15 Dec sending off as many docs as I had, relevant to the car. This included the registration document (V55), the MOT, and a copy of my picture driving licence. I stated that I anticipated moving to Aus around Feb/March 2007 but had no date as yet. I also did not state my situation or say anything about visa etc.

They then responded asking for a certified copy of my passport. I took a colour copy, had a mate (policeman) approve it, and emailed this to them on the 18 Dec.

Today, the 28 Dec, via mail (not email) and dated 20 Dec, I received full approval for importing the vehicle. Now we're no longer going due to a new job opportunity, it makes no difference but have to say it was very easy to do and only took 5 days from start to finish.

email address for everything was [email protected]

Andy